Campaign contributions

This chart shows how many candidates ran for state Senate in Montana in past years and the cumulative amount of campaign contributions in state Senate races, including contributions in both primary and general election contests. All figures come from Follow The Money.[1]

Year

Number of candidates

Total contributions

2008

56

$744,742

2006

62

$687,206

2004

57

$600,450

2002

53

$521,540

Incumbency

Unopposed incumbents

Only two incumbents (22.2%), Democrat Mitch Tropila and Republican Dave Lewis, face no competition in the November 2 general election.

Primary challenges

No incumbents faced competition in the June 8 primary.

Retiring incumbents

One incumbent representative, Democrat Carol Juneau, is eligible and not running for re-election, while 9 of the eligible incumbents (90%) are running for re-election. The remaining 15 incumbents term out in 2010.